"After the children sleep, I sneak downstairs a to put their outfits and gifts out, and then wake up before everyone else to get the breakfast table ready." Nora

Eid al-Adha is usually simpler for us. Our bigger family like to go on short trips and staycations around the UAE, so if we don’t have a trip planned, then we'll spend more time as a small family going on lovely outings and doing activities together.

I tend to choose easier outfits for the celebrations, pieces they can wear for many occasions afterwards. I focus on a statement piece for the first day — as the bigger family gathers for the Eid morning — and then pick lighter outfits for the second and third day of Eid. I find myself usually reaching for pieces from Beatrice & George, they are timeless and versatile for both girls and boys. And then Children’s Classics always have the perfect pair of shoes. 

For this year’s first day of Eid, we went with some of our favourite brands, starting with Beatrice & George. Mohamed will be wearing a beige linen set, paired with classic brown suede loafers by Age of Innocence. For the girls, I picked an organza smocked dress. It has beautiful pastel shimmering flowers, and we are pairing it with timeless white Mary-Jane shoes from Children’s Classics, which the girls love. The second day of Eid has more playful colours, Athba and Dana are wearing floral dresses by Needle & Thread, paired with champagne-coloured shoes from Beatrice & George and Children’s Classics, while Mohamed is going with a sky-blue striped set from Rochy, paired with grey loafers, also from Children’s Classics.  

I am lucky my children are still in an age where I can dress them alike, I want to do matching outfits for as long as I can! We have the most beautiful family photos to look at with matching outfits from past years. Athba is now at an age where she has creative opinions, so she now joins me in picking the outfits, and we can do mummy-and-me nail salon dates for Eid. I love seeing Dana trying to copy her older sister and can’t wait to see how she’ll grow into her own style in the future.  

I like to sneak downstairs after the children sleep and put out their outfits and gifts with some decorations and then wake up before everyone to have the breakfast table ready. We like to wear new pyjamas every Eid and only change after breakfast — this was my mummy’s trick to avoid spoiling the outfits, but has now become a fun tradition for us. When it’s time to get dressed, I do all the kids first and then get ready myself to head out to our family Eid party with grandparents, cousins, uncles and aunties.  

The little gifts! They wait for weeks for them, then run down the stairs to see their outfits and open their little gifts before breakfast. They also receive money from the grown-ups so they get to choose how to spend their Eid money. We also pick little gifts and treats for their cousins and grandparents, and sometimes host them at our house — they’re always excited to see the looks on their faces and have so much fun playing together. 

Celebrate all the little moments in life, don’t wait for others to do it. Be the person who puts out the decorations, brings the flowers, or the little treats; it becomes a part of your life you will look forward to each time and brings you so much joy!